The neutral zone
by cattaclysm
Summary: When all things change, it is up to one man, Kevin Stoley, that's me, to save the world. But someone enters this world unguarded and goes through all the shields. Someone breaches the barrier. And that someone will be my guide to the galaxy. -Stolovan-


It starts off in August, on a hot night, when every breeze is welcomed with a blissful sigh and the mosquitoes are merciless and vicious. It was one of those nights where you simply look back on the months passed and wonder about the future while laying in your underwear as the TV drones on in the background and the distinct sound of crickets attracts more attention than any other noise. Where you can't hear anything, but understand it all clearly.

I suppose I realized embarking on any journey is bound to have its ups and downs (and also neutrals) yet I hoped the ups would be bigger in comparison. I reminisced over the years spent in this quiet, little, redneck mountain town. It wasn't going anywhere, per say, it all just seemed so... distant. I wasn't prepared for any sort of change, no matter how basic yet everything was slowly moving, but it felt like the world was passing by my window. Yet in this house, this territory, time seemed to stop. Everything outside of it was another land and the ends of our fields and land were the barriers. Yet someone breached these barriers, entered my timeless land and set up camp, with no consideration of the whirlpool of emotions that would stir up in me. Yes, you could say Clyde Donovan was the prime cause of my loss of sensible thought. Curse him and his nice shoes.

But, oh, this was no ordinary confusion as he broke through a barrier no one else even knew existed. Yes, it all starts off on the 4th of August, the day before the night aforementioned. The day started off simple enough, there was no mess of emotions or anything of the sort. I woke up at approximately 10AM yet I felt as if I got no sleep. My eyes stung as I opened them and attempted to get used to the light. Everything was so bright yet so gloomy. August was like that. It still pertained to the summer heat yet it worked as a sort of bridge between autumn and summer, and it was noticeable.

I did my morning routine like any other person and set off to the field of grass and flowers that traveled up the small hill by my house. I turned to face my home and the street, both of which seemed so strange and distant. I brought a book with me, lest I get bored. _"Iceberg" _by Clive Cussler, along with a bottle of water and some popcorn which I held one hand over, protecting it from the grass and flowers.

I leaned on my elbows and looked at the way my mansion seemed to fade when faced with the hot sun, its white walls versus the sun's bright rays. I let my thoughts take me to a distant land of space pirates and robots, wars and mathematics.

Just as I was about to solve the one equation to rule them all, I felt a light tap on my shoulder and turned to see none other than... what was his name? Clark Kent? No... Clyde. Clyde Donovan. He stared at me with a determined look on his face and a hopeful one in his eyes.

"Kevin! Thank god!" he said between pants as he fought to catch his breath, so I idly patted the ground, inviting him to sit, but he shook his head, "Have you seen Cartman?"

"No?" I arched a brow. Why was he looking for Cartman? "Why are you looking for Cartman?"

"Him and Token got into some argument over something dumb, but Cartman ran off somewhere," he scratched the back of his head and chuckled, "Said he'd wreck some land he had somewhere."

"Well I haven't seen him. How'd you get this far from town anyway?"

"Barely," he breathed, "I don't know how I'm gonna get back."

"Well, you can sit down and then my mum can call your dad or something if you want."

"Nah, he's working," he said and sat down next to me. His eyes seemed to reflect the skies in that absolutely-not-cheesy manner. He dug a hand in my bowl of popcorn and grabbed a handful before popping each one individually inside his mouth and chewing, "Man, is that your house?" he asked loudly and pointed at the large, white structure ahead.

"Yeah," I said modestly and smiled, "It's not that big of a deal."

"Are you kidding?" he exclaimed, "It's huge!"

As he sat by me I tried to ignore his presence but my eyes kept darting towards his, then his mouth, neck, chest, stomach and then- oh god. I quickly averted my gaze towards the sky and sighed idly.

"How's your summer been?" he asked enthusiastically and smiled at me. Damn you, Clyde Donovan, and your smile!

"Dull," I mumbled, "It gets a bit lonely here," although I didn't exactly mind, "But then again, loneliness is good, I guess, company can get overwhelming."

"Ah, the vicious cycle," he sighed, "Hang with people and feel uncomfortable or chill in your room and be lonely."

I hummed in response and we remained in silence for a few moments.

"How about yours?" I asked. I hoped he'd have something interesting to say.

"Not too bad. I mean, besides losing my extremely rad and totally not lame collection of Harry Potter DVDs and cracking the screen on my phone," he lifted his arm, and in his hand he held the evidence and I visibly cringed, "But, yeah, boring, too. It's passing by pretty fast but like," and he paused and bit his lip, as if he was unsure of what to say, "I feel like I can't catch up with it. Time's passing at super speed and I'm stuck in slow motion," he elaborated.

Could it be Clyde Donovan was experiencing the same feelings I was? I wondered and confirmed this as he said that last part. I might have found the only other person on the planet as lost and unprepared as I was and I felt a strange feeling of security and relation. I imagined how different it would be if the universe had a tour guide. Maybe I was Clyde's? Hello, my name is Kevin Stoley and I'll be your guide in this lifelong adventure. Yeah, I could warm up to that idea.

"I know what you mean. It feels like I'm watching a movie sometimes," I mumble, "Everything is going by so fast and I'm just... there."

He smiled in agreement and ran a hand through his messy, chestnut hair and I swear the quiet noise I made was of my heart physically exiting my body through my mouth. Luckily he didn't catch the sound of me releasing the intersection of every vein in my body out of my aforementioned body. No, he absolutely didn't hear that.

"You know, they're arranging some festival thing," he offered, "Reckon you'll go?"

"I don't think so," I admitted. I'm not one for outings, "I'm not sure my parents would even let me," I laughed.

He looked around himself and I noticed his eyes widen as if he's just entered another dimension, and then his face went into his usual smile, only... there was something calming about it.

"This place is beautiful," he commented happily, "I wish I could just stay here forever."

Whoa. Clyde Donovan just suggested staying in my field forever. In my near vicinity.

"It's pretty brilliant. The only bad thing is the isolation, although," I paused, wondering whether to say what I wanted to, "I guess it's not that bad. It's really peaceful."

We continued with some idle chitchat and I don't think I've ever felt this close to someone, especially considering we rarely actually talk. But his eyes were the color of the sky and his voice was slowly breaking the barrier I had set and I had no problem with that. Maybe someone else in these fields would be good for me, maybe a visitor to this world I had was welcome, and maybe _he_ would be my guide through this lifetime. Maybe a mutual guideship was encouraged, maybe he's just what I needed.

And maybe he didn't mind being a guest among these flowers and he meant what he said. Maybe I would be seeing him around again. And then I caught him looking directly at me with this look of amazement, as if I was some precious item at a museum that caught his eye, or maybe a brand new comic book, fresh out the plastic packaging. Maybe that's why he had no problem reading me. Or that's how it appeared to me, I was an open book to this kid and I didn't exactly mind.

Where was I? Oh yes, Clyde was looking at me. I looked back at him and we shared this moment of mutually-looking-at-each-other and his mouth fell open slightly and his cheeks tinted red and I kept my mouth closed but I might have gotten a bit red too. Was this romantic attraction? Was this the fear the brave space-pirate had to face in order to destroy the rival ship? That he had a crush? Was he my trigger? Was he my kryptonite?

He took his eyes off me first, and I followed suit and I knew the answer but I was afraid to admit it. Maybe there was a chance to get out of this! But as I peeked at his eyes again, I knew I fell too deep to get out. I had faced my greatest opponent and instead of wanting to defeat him, I wanted to claim his heart. Clyde Donovan would be my second in command. He would be the end of me.

And then I noticed something moving. It was small and it flew around us, its wings fluttering. Oh, it was a butterfly. It flew laps around us and I feared for the creature's mental state before it stopped mid-air, right in front of me. I opened my hands and caught the... insect? The butterfly, anyway.

"Did you catch it?" Clyde asked and I nodded, "Cool! Can I see?"

I moved my hands right in front of his chest and opened them slightly. Swiftly, the creature flew out and hit Clyde's face gently. Clyde, in turn, gasped and laughed.

"That was really cool," he said and smiled, "I could never catch any, they're too fast," and at that moment, I swear I could listen to this voice forever, because it was the only thing that made sense. In this wild world full of unanswered questions and unnecessary battle, his voice meant reason, peace, bliss, and I reveled in the sound of it. Damn you, Clyde Donovan, and your voice!

I wanted to hate him because he was here, he entered without permission but I think somewhere amongst these flowers and trees I gave him just that when I let him sit down, and I think I gave him permission to conquer this land with me when I showed him that butterfly, and I think I gave him permission to rule this world with me when I touched his hand. And I think I gave him permission to give me his heart when he stole mine.

And we sat there all day and I... enjoyed it. It was like we were connecting, sort of, like two lines, slowly moving towards each other until they inevitably touch. And then they don't go anywhere because the dot they both touched indicates the finish line. But what was the finish line in this case? I saw him shifting around and he slowly, sneakily got closer to me, physically, and I felt we might have been nearing it, and then he sat his hand down beside me and I felt his hot breath against me. Was this the finish line?

And then he kissed me. Boom! Fireworks! Not exactly. It was slow and hesitant but my mind was blown as his lips touched mine and I could feel him breathe into me and I thought, maybe we reached the finish line. Or maybe we weren't even close. I hoped it was the latter, I wouldn't mind more kisses from him. He mumbled something incoherent against my lips and I wondered what it was for a moment but then I understood what he said and I hummed in response.

And then we parted and I touched my lips, as if checking whether this just happened. But when he looked at me with those eyes, that was all the encouragement I needed and I quickly cupped his cheek and kissed him again. This time, it was shorter, more relaxed, but still it felt like we were exchanging breaths and I damned him and everything about him with every sensible thought I could form, but everything I cursed, I fell more and more in love with when I felt him hum against my mouth.

Clyde Donovan has breached the barrier.

I let this thought sink that night as I lay awake, in my boxers, listening to the crickets idly and wondering what was next in my adventure. Then I heard a tap against my window.

I got up and moved the curtains, but I still couldn't make out who it was so I opened it. A pebble hit my hand and I glared at the culprit who waved his hands apologetically.

"Kevin!" It was Clyde. I could recognize those cool shoes anywhere, "I know you said you didn't wanna go to that festival, so how about we go watch some movies at my place? And then later we can scope it if we feel like it!" he called and my eyes widened before I scurried off to get dressed and darted out the door.

My thoughts were rushed and hasty and so was my heartbeat and I knew I found my guide to the galaxy. Yes, Clyde Donovan had breached the barrier, and I allowed him wholeheartedly.


End file.
